La Mallorquina, Colònia de Sant Jordi

It’s always a good day when you discover an eatery that surpasses all your expectations. That’s what happened when we met up with a dear friend for lunch at one of his local eateries, La Mallorquina, open all year in Colònia de Sant Jordi.

La Mallorquina is on the corner almost opposite the Tourist Information Centre and has terrace seating. But a cool breeze and tables in the shade that day led us indoors to a light and attractively decorated space with wall murals of almond blossom – very timely for a February visit. La Mallorquina is open from 9 in the morning so it’s a place too for coffee and cake or other drinks.

We were the first to arrive for lunch but had booked. It wasn’t long before the place was busy, with diners including the discerning owners we know of a local 5-star hotel.

The menu is shown on a QR code on each table, but Milva, our Cuban server, came straight to the table to tell us about the specials that day. She’s a delightfully warm person with an engaging smile. As this was a first visit for two of us, Milva explained that everything’s made on the premises by the young Italian chef, Alessandro Raddato, who hails from the south of Italy but later lived in Florence.

La Mallorquina´s lunchtime offer includes meat and fish, rice, pasta, salads, and pizza. We had a bowl of olives to start – and a complimentary prawn croquette with a good prawn flavour – turning down starters to leave space for one of Alessandro’s own desserts.

My main course was a generous and delicious bowl of Alessandro’s tagliatelle with prawns; my male companions each had lamb shank with sobrasada and mashed potato, which was a hearty dish for good appetites and went down well. We each had a glass of wine – which thanks to a special offer until the end of February – was included in the cost of the main course.

Three clean plates later, we couldn’t resist a slice of one of chef’s tempting cakes sitting in the chiller cabinet in the dining area. I had banoffee pie and my companions had cheesecake. The tiramisu has a rather special presentation here and as we didn’t have it this time, a return visit to try it will be a pleasure because La Mallorquina ticks lots of boxes.

Until the end of February, La Mallorquina has a special lunchtime offer: buy a meat, fish, rice, or pasta main course (but not a salad or a pizza), and one drink (soft, wine, or beer) plus a dessert or coffee or tea) is included in the price of the chosen dish.

Photos: Jan Edwards